The Power of Being Grateful

Today I’m Thankful for . . .

Spring Break! This week is spring break at the college where I teach. I’m thankful to have a break mid-semester to get some rest, work on some projects, and start recovering from the short winter days. Spring break gets me in the mood to enjoy spring. I am also grateful to have found a really nice series on being grateful than I can share with you. Below is a video message about how you can Improve Your Life by Being Grateful. You can also Click Here to download just the audio in an MP3 file. Enjoy, and let me know what you are thankful for today.

Transcript

Improve Your Life by Being Grateful

Do you wake up in the morning looking forward to the challenges that the day will bring you? Or do you find that you are more fearful of what lies ahead for you? If the latter is true then it is time to start working on improving your mindset and learning how to be grateful for what you have.

Showing that you are grateful to others doesn’t mean you have to be all smiles and always be giving people compliments. It does mean though that you need to make an effort to acknowledge those around you.

There are lots of small ways that you can show how grateful you are to others. Just smiling and nodding your head are two simple, yet effective ways of doing just this. You could try to say “thank you” to people a little more often too.

If you think good thoughts your mood and outlook automatically change. You will feel happier and others will notice this too. Your movements will portray your true feelings.
Work on thinking positive thoughts. The best way to do this is to pick one thing that you are grateful for. This doesn’t have to be something huge, it can be a very small thing that you appreciated. Did someone hold the elevator door for you on the way to work, for example? Or did someone thank you for some small gesture you made?

Take a good look at your life, this includes your home, your friends, your family, place of work and other areas. What things do you like about your life? Write them down. Then pick an area that you would like to improve and make a note of this as well.

It is human nature to always think about those things you don’t like. So now that you have selected something you don’t like, write out how you can improve this. Then set yourself a goal for actually committing to doing something about it. Then it is up to you to take action on it.

If you do this, then you can’t sit around feeling sorry for yourself. Instead you can look at your list and know you have the tools and resources to make positive changes. Just start working on your plan each day or week. You don’t want to become obsessive either, but now that you have a goal to work towards you can change your life.

Always remember to be grateful for those small things in your life, while you are working on improving other areas.

Check back next Thankful Thursday for another installment in this series on gratitude.